BootDigest Such a frustrating disappointment

Janae Milner Easily the biggest piece of Right wing non sense propaganda I ever saw.

Bessie Smyth Great story, amazing characters, superb action, enthralling cinematography. Yes, this is something I am glad I spent money on.

Arianna Moses Let me be very fair here, this is not the best movie in my opinion. But, this movie is fun, it has purpose and is very enjoyable to watch.

SimonJack "The Son of Monte Cristo" is a nice swashbuckler that stars Louis Hayward, Joan Bennett and George Sanders. The story is a familiar one, involving a fictitious country in Eastern Europe. It was a curious thing for such a movie while World War II was going on in Europe. But, the screenplay and script are quite good. I agree with another review on the beautiful and rather elegant set, especially for the castle of the Grand Duchess. Hayward plays Edmund Dantes, Jr., Bennett is the Grand Duchess Zona of Lichtenburg, and Sanders is the evil – but almost likable, Gen. Gurko Lanen who would rule the kingdom. Even with the sword play and fisticuffs in this movie, there isn't a lot of gruesome killing or torture. As I watched Hayward with his energy and vigor, and his funny quips just at the right moments, it struck me that that was a common trait of most swashbuckler films. They had some level of humor. It was most often a talent of the hero. The South African-born Hayward played mostly drama, mysteries and action films during his career. He did do some comedy, and was in a few good war films – mostly about World War I. He also starred as Simon Templar in the early three films made about the detective known as "The Saint." He planed opposite leading ladies of the time and worked in films from various studios – MGM, Paramount, Universal, Warner Brothers, RKO and United Artists. He also made some British films. In the 1950s and 1960s, he did mostly TV work with an occasional film. Bennett also had a long, successful career in Hollywood. She didn't reach the star status of the biggest names, but she starred in many films and played opposite many of the leading men of the time. She did some comedy but her forte seemed to be drama and mysteries. She too drifted more into TV work from the mid-1950s through the 1970s, with just an occasional Hollywood movie here and there. A very attractive woman, Bennett had something of a Bob Hope nose – that turned up just a bit at the end. It was cute, but she was seldom seen from the side – I suspect for that reason. But I did notice her side shot and cute nose a couple of times in this film. The acting is very good all around. Another reviewer noted some of the young supporting cast who would go on to fame in some specific roles. Clayton Moore plays Lt. Fritz Dorner and would later become the Lone Ranger. There are a couple of silly aspects here as well. The idea of a whole outside wall of a curved turret swinging open to reveal a hidden passage is quite funny. Then in the catacombs, there were skeletons exposed and not in crypts or niches. Also, the catacombs were lower than the city sewers. Well, this film has lots of action and makes for an enjoyable time with the whole family.

bkoganbing Louis Hayward never got quite the acclaim that swashbuckling actors like Tyrone Power and Errol Flynn did for these roles. He was an independent and never had a big studio to back him. This film, The Son Of Monte Cristo was an Edward Small production released by United Artists and it shows Hayward at his best advantage as a larger than life hero who fought for honor, his lady's as well as a cause of freedom.As we know from Alexandre Dumas's novel The Count Of Monte Cristo, he became the wealthiest man in Europe with a taste for the cause of liberty and a man who as a banker knew how to settle all kinds of accounts. His son Edmond Dantes, Jr. is following in Dad's footsteps and they've brought him to the Duchy of Lichtenberg whose military dictator George Sanders rules with a brutal hand in the name of the Queen, Joan Bennett. But Sanders ambition knows no limits as the viewer of this film learns, he'll make Lichtenberg a satellite of a major European power if he can be king as well as military ruler.The film borrows from both The Scarlet Pimpernel and The Mark Of Zorro as Hayward turns Monte Cristo into a dandified fop representing his banking house. By night however he becomes the hooded Torch, symbol of liberty for the people of Lichtenberg who keeps striking where Sanders least expects it.This film along with The Man In The Iron Mask from the previous year marked Hayward's apex as a film star. His service as a combat photographer with the Marines during World War II earned him a Silver Star. But his absence from the screen put a halt to his rise to the top of the Hollywood pinnacle. Other stars like James Stewart, Tyrone Power, and Clark Gable made it all the way back, but sadly Hayward never did.Joan Bennett is a beautiful heroine willing to bear the unbearable for her people and life with Sanders as a husband and king is pretty unbearable. Montagu Love who is usually a bad guy in these kind of films is a good guy here as the minister Bennett has confidence in. Ian Wolfe who usually plays nebbish types is a particularly sneaky and nasty spy for Sanders and he really gets what's coming to him. You'll also recognize Clayton Moore with that distinctive voice in a part without the Lone Ranger mask and young Rand Brooks who was Olivia deHavilland's brother in Gone With The Wind plays another eager young patriot. As for Sanders this film is business as usual for him as he plays yet another distinctive cad as a villain.Heroes aren't real heroes in our more cynical age which is the reason that sadly films like The Son Of Monte Cristo aren't made any more.

ralamerica While watching the movie, I was shocked that it took so long for the son of the count to get even with George Sanders as the ruthless Gurko Lanen. The son of Monte Cristo, as the Torch, spends a lot of time trying to save Joan Bennett from the evil clutches of Saunders. Why, by golly, he had the most famous cop in the world and the hero of the Old West to help him out. Lieutenant of the Guards is played by none other than that masked man himself, Clayton Moore (the Lone Ranger). As the film begins we also see Ralph Byrd (the essential Dick Tracy) duking it out with Sanders. And to top it off, Rand Brooks is on hand to give aid to the Torch. Rand, as many should recall, would a couple of years later play Lucky Jenkins, one of Hopalong Cassidy's crime-fighting sidekicks. Is it s coincidence that with these two cowboy stars on hand that the script resembles more the "Mark of Zorro" than a sequel to "The Count of Monte Cristo"?

Snow Leopard With a good story full of adventure, action, and intrigue, plus a very good cast, "The Son of Monte Cristo" is an entertaining and enjoyable movie. Louis Hayward and Joan Bennett work well in the lead roles, and George Sanders is always a threat to steal any scene he is in. The story stands on its own, since the only connection it has with the often-filmed "The Count of Monte Cristo" is the main character's relationship with the previous Count. So there's no need to be familiar with the original to be able to enjoy this one.Bennett is effective as the spirited Grand Duchess, and Hayward has a juicy role as the young Count, which gives him the chance to assume a different persona every so often during the course of the story. As the brutally ambitious general, Sanders's appearance is quite a bit different from the more familiar look he has in his best-known roles, but his voice and mannerisms are easily recognizable, and he comes across with a good blend of suavity and menace.The story has the Grand Duchess being held at the mercy of the general, with the Count eagerly getting involved in the fictional country's affairs. The story has many turns and mild surprises, and it does a rather resourceful job of coming up with new predicaments and developments to keep things going. Most of the plot devices are familiar from other sources, but they are pieced together with skill, and its very good as light entertainment.